Case Study 4

Management Training Programmes - Cygnet Group

Situation/Need

The Cygnet Group consists of a number of companies within the Engineering, Design and Development sector. The CEO wished to continue to grow the organisation by a factor of eight over the following five years. In order to achieve this he was clear that the management capability in each of the four companies needed to be enhanced. Most of the senior managers in each company were technical specialists with little or no formal management/leadership training. The CEO was acting MD in three of the businesses.

It was also important to achieve benefits from cross company collaborations. This would become more important as new companies were acquired and became part of the Cygnet Group.

Approach/Solution

We facilitated discussion between the CEO, COO and CFO that produced a people development strategy supporting the organisations medium and long term goals.

As part of this strategy we provided targeted management training programmes covering key areas such as performance management, handling change and team leadership. We also provided coaching support for key people, helping with follow-through activities and team reviews focused on encouraging the continued process of gauging progress towards agreed targets.

Results

In the 2 years since initiating the development strategy Cygnet Group has acquired four more businesses and has increased its revenue by a factor of three. All organisations within the Cygnet Group now have MDs, all bar one having been promoted from within.

Collaboration between organisations within the group has significantly increased, resulting in identifiable benefits in both revenue and motivation.